Railway sector sees great opportunities amid COVID-19

Illustrative image (Source: VNA)

According to Tran The Hung, General Director of the Railway Transport and Trading Joint Stock Company (Ratraco), said that while a drop was seen in passenger transport, the transport of goods rose 20 percent in volume and 16 percent in revenue.

Regarding the efficiency of the Vietnam-Belgium direct railway route, which has been launched since July with three trips so far, Hung said that although specific effectiveness has yet to be evaluated, the Vietnamese railway sector’s engagement in logistics service supply chain has provided more options for exporters when maritime shipment faces surging costs and takes longer time.

Departing from Yen Vien Station in Hanoi, the train with 23 containers stops at Zhenzhou city of China’s Henan province and connect to the Asia-Europe train to reach its destination.

Due to limited railway infrastructure and container management, Ratraco has yet to be able to carry all 41 containers in a train to Europe, said Hung.

He added that the firm is working with partners to develop plans to operate one trip per week in a fixed schedule from Vietnam to Belgium. The firm expects to launch additional routes from Vietnam to Germany, Russia and Poland at the end of the third quarter.

The Ratraco leader held that in the long term, it is necessary to connect railways with seaports, thus optimising the efficiency of both transport types and reducing cost and environmental pollution./.

VNA